Travel Reference
In-Depth Information
tion of putting up nets, it was prosecuted
by animal rights organizations for trapping
birds using grapes as bait.) It was not until
the mid-'80s that the wineries finally mas-
tered the art of using frost to freeze out
unwanted water from the grape and pro-
duce a delicious sweet wine with tongue-
tingling acidity.
Inniskillin winery is actually a 1920s
barn with low walls and a tall imposing
roof. Little would you guess that 300,000
people pass through its doors every year.
This rustic-style visitor and tour center
also has a wine boutique and demonstra-
tion kitchen. The winery is very much
geared up for visitors, and it has the added
attraction of being just as interesting to
visit in the winter as in summer. Every
January, a 10-day Icewine Festival draws
thousands to enjoy tastings on a 7m-long
(23 ft.) wine bar that is actually a 7,000-kilo
(15,000-lb.) block of ice. Hundreds of ice
carvers gather to partake in ice sculpture
competitions. Come springtime it all melts
away—but it's reassuring to know that the
wine itself will last for decades.
Inniskillin helped put ice wine on the map.
Inniskillin,
1499 Line 3, Niagara Pkwy.,
Niagara-on-the-Lake, Ontario (
&
905/468-
2187;
www.inniskillin.com).
(
Toronto (164km/102 miles).
What is remarkable about Canadian ice
wine is that 30 years ago it did not exist.
Hainle winery in British Colombia (see )
was the first to produce a commercial vin-
tage, but it was Inniskillin in Ontario that
put the wine on the map. That's not to say
it was easy going. In 1983 Inniskillin lost its
entire crop to birds. (When neighboring
Pelee Island Vineyards took the precau-
L
$$$
The Shaw Club,
92 Picton St.,
Niagara-on-the-Lake (
&
905/468-5711;
www.shawclub.com). $$
The Charles
Inn,
209 Queen St., Niagara-on-the-Lake
(
&
905/468-4588;
www.charlesinn.ca).
France
311
Domaine Henri Bourgeois
Getting Lost in the Loire
Sancerre, Loire Valley, France
An early morning stroll in the central vine-
yards of the Loire valley is embracing.
Duck out of your hotel after a hearty
breakfast and head for the hills, following
whatever road takes you upward and
away from the town. Keep walking and try
not to look back—not yet, anyhow. Do not
worry about getting lost, because you will
